The present invention generally relates to implements for sewing. More particularly, the present invention relates to disposable sewing implements.
Threading a needle is a tedious task that often cannot be accomplished by the handicapped, elderly and those having difficulty in performing fine motor tasks or having poor vision. Furthermore, oftentimes a short length of thread is needed for quick mending of a button or small tear, for example, which demonstrates the need for a readily available and portable needle and thread.
A disposable sewing implement is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 2,883,096 to Dawson comprising a thermoplastic resin needle integrally merged with a length of flexible thermoplastic resin thread. The Dawson invention does not provide means for a needle combined with variously-colored fibrous thread material which is necessary for many sewing tasks wherein the thread will be revealed and continuity in appearance is desired. In U.S. Pat. No. 3,206,086 to Duffney a disposable threaded needle is disclosed wherein a plastic needle has a strand of thread embedded in its blunt end which communicates with a thread spool that is detachably secured to said needle. Like the sewing implement disclosed in the Dawson invention the Duffney threaded needle utilizes molded plastic material to form the needle portion of the device which eliminates some of the advantages of the steel or other metallic needles.
A primary consideration for the use of a plastic material for the sharp portion of a sewing implement is to prevent injury resulting from mislaid or misused sewing devices. This solution to the problem of potential injury however eliminates the handling advantages afforded by a needle formed from metals. Plastic needles must be formed with a slender diameter which does not have the rigidity of the convention steel needles and thus plastic needles often bend during use or must be constructed of a thickness unsuitable for many close tolerance uses. Therefore there remains a need in the prior art for a safe disposable sewing implement having the rigid qualities of the conventional needle.